Sir Arnold Bax, English Composer (1883-1953)

Sir Arnold Bax was a writer and composer with a

love of English literature and poetry, including Wil-

liam Butler Yeats. He studied in London and later

settled in Dublin where he wrote poetry, short sto-

ries, plays and music. His music evokes the rich heri-

tage of the British Isles.

Tintagel composed in 1919, duration is 15 minutes

Tintagel is the name of a castle in England that is the legendary birthplace of King

Arthur. The ruins still exist and many fans of the King Arthur story make pilgrim-

ages there to see it. Composer Sir Arnold Bax wrote a tone poem evoking the

setting of this Arthurian legend. The fable tells of how Sir Lancelot and Sir Ga-

wain, riding with King Arthur, came upon a remote site at the edge of the sea

where they found the ruins of an old castle. An aged priest reveals the story of

King Arthur’s birth - that the castle, Tintagel, fell into a mystic decline decades

before because, while King Gorlois was away, his Queen, Igraine, was deceived by

the magic of Merlin to believe her husband had returned. To her chamber she

accepted the rival King

Uther, who was perfectly

disguised. The child she

conceived, in honorable sin,

was named Arthur, who,

from his lowly birth in dis-

grace, would one day be-

come the most worthy and

revered King. Bax creates a

sonic canvas for this story

that conjures the mystique

of the castle at the edge of

the frothy sea.

• BAX

Tintagel

• NIELSEN

Violin Concerto

• ELGAR

“Enigma” Variations

Elgar’s Enigma

10:30am

Friday, Nov. 20

REPERTOIRE

The ruins of Tintagel Castle in Cornwall, United Kingdom

Nielsen’s Violin Concerto is a flash-back to

the flair of the great Baroque traditions.

For example, the opening Largo is set off in the

manner of a Baroque Prealudium, calling at

once for an ambitious cadenza from the soloist.

This jumps right into a high-energy storm of

color. Reflecting Bach-ward once again, at the

very beginning of the second big section

marked Poco adagio the music begins with a

quote of the famous Bach motive:

which in German spells out “Bach”

This is called a musical cryptogram.

It is worth noting that Johann Sebastian Bach

himself was fascinated by such numerology and

that very same sequence of tones shows up

often throughout his music. But while Bach

most often used those tones in his harmoniza-

tions and counterpoint, Nielsen uses them as

seeds for the principal theme of the Poco Ada-

gio. The concerto ends with a dramatic and

adventurous cadenza for the violin and a race

between orchestra and violin soloist to the fin-

ish!

Carl Nielsen had a natural talent for

music from an early age despite being

the seventh of 12 children in an ex-

ceedingly poor family. The story tells

that at age 5, Nielsen went to the

wood pile behind the family shed, se-

lected a set of fire logs that produced

different pitches when struck (like a

primitive marimba) and proceeded to

‘perform’ popular folk tunes that he

had heard in the neighborhood! He

studied music formally (both violin playing and composing) and became one of Denmark’s most

prolific and well-known composers. He is even featured on his country’s 100 kroner bill.

Jennifer Koh is dedicated to performing the

violin repertoire of all eras from traditional to

contemporary, believing that the past and pre-

sent form a continuum. She is also committed

to exploring connections in the works she

performs, searching for similarities of voice

among diverse composers and associations

within the works of a single composer. She is

especially fascinated with Johann Sebastian

Bach’s music and is releasing a 3 CD series

called Bach and Be-

yond which includes

the music of di-

verse composers

with musical con-

nections to Bach.

She travels the

world performing

recitals and soloing

with orchestras.

Violin Concerto, Op. 33 composed in 1911, duration is 35 minutes

Carl Nielsen, Danish Composer (1865-1931)

Jennifer Koh, violin soloist

Page 2

FRIDAY, NOV. 20

The “Enigma” Variations are based on a theme, the origin of which Sir Elgar never revealed to the

listeners, hence its “enigma.” There are 14 variations, each a musical portrait of someone that Sir

Elgar knew well. Elgar writes, “It may be understood that these personages comment or reflect on

the original theme & each one attempts a solution of the Enigma.” Many people have tried to solve

the enigma of the theme (Sir Elgar claimed that it was based on a well known tune which he altered

in some unusual way creating a “hidden melody”) and some say there must be a musical crypto-

gram in the theme, because Sir Elgar loved puzzles and sometimes sent musical cryptographic mes-

sages to friends. To this day, the enigma has not been solved!

After hearing the theme we hear each of the variations in turn:

1 - Listesso tempo............Caroline Alice Elgar, Sir Elgar’s wife 2 - Allegro...................H.D. Steuart-Powell, a pianist and chamber musician 3 - Allegretto................R.B. Townsend, Oxford professor and author 4 - Allegro di molto..........W.M. Baker, a squire (man of high social standing and landowner) 5 - Moderato..................R.P. Arnold, a pianist and son of a poet 6 - Andantino.................Isabel Fitton, a viola student of Sir Elgar’s 7 - Presto....................A.T. Griffith, an architect and one of Sir Elgar’s closest friends 8 - Allegretto................Winifred Norbury, a secretary at the Worcester Philharmonic Society 9 - Adagio....................A.J. Jaeger (Nimrod), a music publisher and a close advisor to Sir Elgar, who often gave him encouragement and advice when the composer was feeling down about his music 10 - Intermezzo: Allegretto....Dora Penny, close friend 11 - Allegro di molto..........G.R. Sinclair, organist at Hereford Cathedral—this variation is inspired by his bulldog! 12 - Andante...................B.G. Nevinson, cellist and friend 13 - Andante...................Lady Mary Trefusis, a well-to-do sponsor of a local music festival 14 - Moderato..................Sir Edward Elgar, a self portrait

Variation 9, often called “Nimrod,” is the most well-known variation and in fact is often performed by itself. The story goes that Sir Elgar was feeling depressed and was going to stop writing music, but his friend A. J. Jaeger came to his house and reminded him that Ludwig van Beethoven also became depressed but continued to write incredibly beautiful music. The beginning of the variation has a hint of Beethoven’s “Pathetique” Piano Sonata.

Sir Edward Elgar grew up in a music shop—his father’s—where he learned to

play many instruments and began composing. He did not enjoy success as a

composer until later in his life when he was recognized for his “Enigma” Varia-

tions, and several other pieces. It is now one of classical music’s most enjoyed

pieces of music, both for its beauty and for the interesting musical portraits

that its creates.

Sir Edward Elgar, English Composer (1857-1934)

Page 3

“Enigma” Variations, Op. 36 composed in 1899, duration is 29 minutes

Explore and Learn:

Can you create your own musical cryptogram? The most famous is Bb, A, C, B natural (spelled with an “H” in German) which spells Bach.

Here is a key for creating your own musical cryptogram:

Bb A C B natural

B A C H

Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra

As Buffalo’s cultural ambassador, the Grammy Award-winning Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra, under Music Director JoAnn Falletta, presents more than 120 Classics, Pops and Youth Concerts each year and reaches more than 40,000 K-12 students per year across all eight counties of Western New

York.

Since 1940, the orchestra’s permanent home has been Kleinhans Music Hall, a National Historic Landmark designed by Eliel and Eero Saarinen with an international reputation as one of the finest concert halls in the United States.

JoAnn Falletta, Conductor

Friday Morning Concert Series

BUFFALO PHILHARMONIC

ORCHESTRA

education@bpo.org

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